


No Plans

by barbaesparza



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Fluff, Friends Date, Getting to Know Each Other, In Denial, M/M, Oblivious Sonny, Pre-Relationship, Talking, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Challenge, Valentine's Day Fluff, Valentine's Prompt Challenge, barisifandomevents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 09:23:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13678845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/barbaesparza/pseuds/barbaesparza
Summary: At the end of a hectic day at work on Valentine's Day, Sonny's last task is to drop some files over to Rafael's office.When Sonny casually asks if Rafael has plans, revealing that he himself doesn't, Rafael not-so-casually invites Sonny over for takeout.





	No Plans

**Author's Note:**

> For the Valentine's Prompt Challenge run by barisifandomevents on tumblr.  
> The prompt is 'Friends Date'!
> 
> Not really edited because I want it to still be Valentine's Day somewhere when I post!

Sonny calls Barba’s office in case he’s still in. He expects to hear Carmen’s voice, but Rafael picks up himself.

“Hello?” he answers.

“Hey, uh.”

“Carisi, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Rafael asks smoothly.

“Um. I’ve got these files Liv wants sent over to you. I can give them to you tomorrow if you’re about to leave, they’re not for our current case-”

“No, that’s fine, you can bring them over now.”

“Oh. Okay, great.”

“That is, unless you'd rather go straight home," Rafael says, backtracking slightly.

“Nah. I’ll see you in a bit.”

“Okay.”

Sonny hangs up and gathers the files, putting away his laptop in his bag.

He walks over to the DA's office, smiling at several couples he passes as they walk hand in hand.

Carmen has gone home, so Sonny knocks directly on Rafael's door.

"Come in," Rafael calls. Sonny does. "Hey, Carisi."

"Hey. Here." Sonny hands the files over and Rafael takes them, setting them down on a small stack off to the side. "You still working?" he asks, gesturing towards the pile of papers spread in front of him.

"Just trying to get ahead," Rafael replies.

"Ah." Sonny nods. He hovers for a moment, watching Rafael scribble and underline with mild interest.

After a short while, Rafael drops his pen on top of the paper and considers the small stack of unread files, grabbing them to leaf through.

"So, no plans, Counselor?” he asks without thinking.

“Plans for what?” Rafael enquires distractedly, already engrossed in the case notes from Liv.

“Tonight.”

Rafael looks up. “No… Why?” he answers briskly.

“Well, it’s Valentine’s Day,” Sonny says awkwardly, already regretting bringing it up.

Oh.” Rafael snorts. “Funny. I haven’t celebrated Valentine’s Day since… never mind.” He returns to his file, tapping along the edge of it in a distracting manner.

“Right, sorry. I didn’t mean to pry. Have a good night, Counselor," Sonny says bashfully, turning to leave.

“What about you, Carisi?” Rafael interjects, his tone curious.

Sonny turns back at Rafael’s question. “Um. Plans? No, no plans.”

They stare at each other uncomfortably for a second before Rafael nods. "Well,” he considers. “I was going to grab some food to take home, um, do you maybe want to join me?”

Sonny raises his eyebrows.

“Not- Not because it’s Valentine’s Day,” Rafael says quickly. “Just- I’m assuming you have to eat, and I just thought it might be nice, to-”

Sonny's lips spread into a smile. “It would be nice. Thanks, Rafael.”

“Great,” Rafael says, sounding slightly out of breath for some reason. "I mean, you don’t have to come over if you don’t want to, you’re welcome to of course, uh. Now you mention it, the restaurants will probably be packed, so, that’s probably a bad idea-”

It's odd, seeing Rafael ramble like this. Sonny cuts him off, taking pity. "I’d love to come over if you’re comfortable with that. You know, some people are pretty private about their spaces…”

“I guess I am," Rafael says slowly. "But I’m sure you won’t judge my decor, will you?” A corner of his lips tugs upwards.

“Me? Judge?” Sonny scoffs. “I’m sure it’s beautiful.”

Rafael shrugs. “It’s comfortable.”

“Alright, well…” Sonny shrugs a shoulder.

“Right." Rafael looks down at the file still in his hand, his brow furrowed slightly. He closes it and sets it down. "I’m done here, so…”

“Oh. Great.”

Rafael stands up, putting the files and stray papers into a desk drawer.

He grabs his briefcase and nudges Sonny out the door, locking up behind them.

He looks up at Sonny for a moment, and Sonny smiles back brightly as they start walking.

"What do you feel like?" Rafael asks conversationally.

"Anything."

"Helpful."

Sonny shoots him a mock glare. "Just go where you were planning to go," Sonny suggests.

"Okay," Rafael says with a nod. "Thai?"

"Sounds good."

They walk out into the open air, a crisp breeze greeting them. Sonny revels in the sight of windswept Rafael, blinking away dust, and pushes back his own hair, which he hadn't bothered to re-gel.

 

They arrive soon at the Thai restaurant to a festive atmosphere, pink and red streamers and balloons an assault to their senses.

Single roses sit in vases on tables, most of them taken up by young couples, chattering loudly so as to hear each other over the music playing overhead. Some of the songs are in Thai, some in English. But Sonny can almost be sure they’re all love songs.

Valentine's Day.

Sonny tries to ignore the fact that he and Rafael are sitting at one of those very tables with one of those single roses between them as he flicks through the menu.

When Sonny decides what he wants, they rise to the counter to place their orders with a waitress who has dozens of glittery stickers all over her shirt, all heart-shaped.

“To go?” she asks.

“Yeah,” Rafael tells her.

She smiles warmly, eyes flicking between them.

"Will you be paying together?" she continues.

"Yes," they both say.

"Great," she says, ever cheerful, and reads off the price of the food.

Rafael elbows Sonny out of the way when he tries to pay, handing over his credit card to the waitress with swift confidence. She processes the transaction and hands the card back, telling them the food should be out soon.

"Uh. That was fucking rude," Sonny jokes as they sit back down to wait.

"This was my idea," Rafael says, shrugging.

"You say that like I wouldn't have thought to eat without your brilliant insight," Sonny quips, dripping with sarcasm.

Rafael just snorts, crossing his legs.

"Thank you, though," Sonny says sincerely.

Rafael narrows his eyes, amused. "You say that like I just gave you an intensely personal and wonderful gift which I spent months brainstorming, researching, and locating," Rafael muses, grinning. "What I did was spend a few dollars on a box of food after I asked you to accompany me."

"Right." Sonny blushes lightly, eyes grazing over the dumb rose. "Well, still. Thanks."

"Okay, okay,” Rafael says with fake sigh. “It's uh, my pleasure, or whatever."

Sonny can't help but smile at Rafael's casual dismissal, and he doesn't realize their food is ready until Rafael stands up to retrieve it.

 

As they walk to Rafael's apartment, the silence between them becomes thick with awkwardness, Sonny's several hesitations stretching into one long pause.

"I guess I gotta say, I feel pretty special, you inviting me here," he finally ventures as they reach the building.

"No, you're not special," Rafael is quick to deny. "I have people over,” he says as they walk up the stairs. “My mother. Liv."

"Right. Well, they seem pretty special to me."

Rafael doesn't answer, just shoots Sonny a quick sideways glance before turning the keys and opening the door.

As Rafael puts away his briefcase and toes off his shoes, Sonny just stands there taking in the sight before him. Rafael's home. It's warm, and cozy, and kinda small. His eyes sweep over classy, clean furnishings and dark wood floors.

"Wow," Sonny says. "It really is nice." He takes off his shoes and sets them beside Rafael's, tilting his head at the image.

"It's really not." Rafael waves it away.

Sonny looks up. "It's so _you_ though. That's- It's great. I like it," Sonny elaborates with a slight smile, and he's not sure why Rafael's eyes widen before turning away, shaking his head minutely. He plops down onto the couch, setting the bag on the coffee table.

"Make yourself at home," he says breezily.

Sonny refuses to let himself dwell on the implication that he's sure Rafael doesn't mean. Instead he just dumps his bag at his feet and sits down on the couch with Rafael, sinking back into the leather to watch Rafael undo the bag and get their food out.

He accepts his food gratefully.

Rafael goes to the kitchen to get them some cutlery and Sonny sits alone, absentmindedly wondering how Rafael spends his time here.

Probably more work. But evidently he also reads for pleasure, and Sonny notices that there’s a TV on the wall. He sweeps the room for more clues and lands on a record player in the corner. Of course. He wonders what kind of music Rafael listens to.

Rafael clatters a bunch of spoons and forks onto the table, and Sonny picks up a spoon for his Massaman curry.

Sonny eats. He didn’t realize how hungry he’d gotten. It’s good, and probably not just because of how hungry he is.

He’s so focused on the food he almost misses the way Rafael curls his feet up onto the couch, taking up a lot more space than strictly necessary.

This is different than being with Rafael at work. This is nice.

He can’t help thinking about how Rafael’s knee is very close to his own thigh.

He swallows and clears his throat. "You've gotta try some of mine, it's really good. Like _really_ good," Sonny offers.

Rafael rolls his eyes and passes his own container to Sonny so they can swap. He takes a mouthful of the curry.

"It's good," Rafael says thoughtfully, soon after.

"Right?"

"How about mine?"

"Oh." Sonny hadn't thought to take any of Rafael's food. He takes a spoonful. "Nice. Could use more seasoning, though."

"Guess my tongue's more sensitive than yours then," Rafael replies nonchalantly.

Sonny nearly chokes on his second bite, but manages to disguise it as a cough.

"Enough pepper?" Rafael asks, a single eyebrow raised.

"Um. Um, yeah, I guess."

Rafael casts him a quizzical look and holds out the container he's holding so they can swap back. Their fingers brush accidentally as they do, and it takes Sonny a while to remember what he’s doing.

They continue eating quietly for a moment.

“So,” Sonny says, breaking the silence. “Off Duty Rafael. Tell me everything.”

Rafael gives him a brief eye roll. “There’s really not much to know.”

“You come home,” Sonny says. “What do you do?”

“Exactly what I’m doing now,” Rafael replies simply.

“Yeah? You eat on the couch every night?”

“Mostly. I usually watch TV while I do,” Rafael says with a shrug.

“What do you watch?”

“Whatever’s on. I like nature documentaries.”

“Oh yeah?”

“They’re calming.”

“What’s your favorite animal?” Sonny asks immediately.

Rafael hums, thinking about it seriously. “Don’t know. They’re all so different. If I had to choose, penguins.”

Sonny grins.

“You?” Rafael says with a hint of a smile.

“Giraffes, I think. They’re adorable.”

Rafael chuckles even though Sonny hadn’t said anything funny.

“Any on right now?” Sonny asks, offhand.

Rafael turns towards the TV. “I’ve got National Geographic.” He tilts his head back towards Sonny. “But we don’t have to do that,” he says, clearly trying to be polite.

“Nah. Don’t let me get in the way of your routine,” Sonny insists. “Anyway, I want to.”

Rafael nods once. “Okay then.”

He grabs the remote and switches on the television to a herd of wildebeest. He sits back onto the couch cushions and Sonny can almost feel some of Rafael’s tension dissipate.

“Brutal,” Sonny comments.

“Yup,” Rafael deadpans.

“So this is calming?” Sonny questions lightheartedly.

“Well, maybe not this particular bit,” Rafael says in agreement. “But at least they’re only killed for food.”

“As opposed to what we see,” Sonny states.

“Right.”

Sonny bites his lip, having unintentionally darkened the mood, and shoves a spoonful of rice in his mouth.

Thankfully, the documentary moves on to a baby giraffe and its mother.

Sonny feels a poke in his side. He squints at Rafael. “What?”

“It’s you,” Rafael says with a cheeky grin.

Sonny scoffs lightly, noticing how Rafael’s eyes crinkle at the corners when he really smiles. “I could never be _that_ cute.”

“Well, you’re really _that_ tall,” Rafael replies, matter-of-fact.

Sonny smiles, lips pursed in amusement.

Their boxes are soon empty, but neither of them move from their spots. Instead, they continue talking over David Attenborough.

A few minutes after the program ends, Sonny thinks to check his watch for the first time that night. “Wow, it’s getting late.”

Rafael blinks. “Uh, yeah, I suppose.”

Sonny stands without grace, and Rafael snickers lightly before joining him.  
Probably something about a baby giraffe again.

"This was nice," Sonny says, suddenly a little shy.

It really was.

He hopes perhaps they can do this again the next Valentine's Day, if they're both still single.

"Yeah," Rafael agrees, his eyes sparkling.

“We should, uh, we should do it again sometime.”

“I’d like that,” Rafael says, as he follows Sonny to the door.

Sonny lingers by the door, knowing he should leave. But Rafael isn’t rushing him. Instead he watches, unhurried and content, as Sonny picks up his bag and puts on his shoes.

Sonny straightens up. “So, uh…”

With a small smile, Rafael waits patiently for Sonny to finish his sentence.

“Thanks. For this. And for the food.”

“Anytime.”

“Well, I’ll see you at work tomorrow probably.”

“Yeah. Good night, Sonny.”

“Bye,” Sonny says, and only after he feels Rafael’s hand pat his shoulder does he realize Rafael had called him by his first name.

Sonny beams, and turns away, his skin tingling where Rafael had made contact.

“Hey, Sonny?” Rafael calls as Sonny’s walking out the door.

“Hm?” He swivels around, bag swinging.

Rafael gives him a winning smile. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Fighting hard not to blush, Sonny returns it warmly. “You too, Rafael.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'd love to know your thoughts :)
> 
> The bit with the credit card is inspired by my cousin who WON'T LET ME PAY FOR ANYTHING.
> 
> Also what's your favourite animal? Because mine are giraffes. If you couldn't tell. :P


End file.
